Smava starts p2p lending in Germany

Here is some background on a P2P lending startup in Germany. The features are familiar, with one odd feature that the minimum bid is 500 Euros. This is unusually high compared to the others in this space, and that will be interesting to see how that works out.

Possibly tied to that point, its not apparent there is any lender fee. That would mean the revenue model would be based on borrower fees only.

Startup Smava.de starts offering p2p lending in Germany. Anybody can lend or request a loan online. Borrowers, after registering will by checked for identity and credit grade by Smava. Smava uses PostIdent (a service offered by German postal service Deutsche Post) to verify the identity of the borrower and relies on credit report information from Schufa, a leading German credit bureau. Smava is only open to borrowers with credit grades A to F (which Smava says leads to expected default rates between 1.4% und 7.2%).